MLB Player News

Chapman arrived at the Athletics spring training facility Thursday and looked to be in excellent shape, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports. "I hit him some ground balls yesterday and I didn't see anything different," Melvin said during a Zoom call Friday. "We just gave him a few. I didn't make him go too far, but he's eager. It's going to be more trying to hold him back than trying to get him ready."

Chapman's strong work ethic makes his early arrival -- position players aren't required to report until Monday -- wholly unsurprising, especially when considering the Gold Glove third baseman was likely anxious to check on his mobility following last year's hip surgery. Not only did the 27-year-old seem to have as good a range as he did pre-surgery according to Melvin, but he also appeared trimmer following an arduous post-op rehab. The manager noted his biggest concern regarding Chapman will be tempering the latter's drive to push himself, with part of his load management plan involving some at-bats at designated hitter in early Cactus League action.

Kieboom still has the confidence of manager Dave Martinez and the Nationals' organization that he can emerge as the team's starting third baseman, Maria Torres of The Athletic reports. "It's hard to judge [Kieboom] on these short snippets of games and at-bats," GM Mike Rizzo said Thursday. "We have to lean towards our evaluators who have seen him for years and progressed through the system and trust that he's the player that we think he is."

The 23-year-old has only a .181/.309/.232 slash line through his first 44 big-league games spread over the last two seasons, but Kieboom was far more productive during his last extended stint at Triple-A in 2019 when he delivered a .303/.409/.493 line over 109 contests. The Nats backed up that confidence in his development by not adding any real veteran competition for him at the hot corner, but if Kieboom does falter again, the team would have the option of sliding Starlin Castro over to third base and handing second base to Luis Garcia.

Urshela (elbow) is getting close to 100 percent, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Urshela underwent surgery to remove a bone chip from his right elbow in early December. Previous reports indicated he was expected to be ready for Opening Day, and that still appears to be the case. He's been throwing across the diamond for about a week without issues.

Davis could be headed for a utility role this season after Mets manager Luis Rojas wouldn't commit to him as the team's starting third baseman during Wednesday's press conference, Deesha Thosar of The New York Daily News reports. "It's really tough right now to commit to any role," Rojas said. "I've got to stick with our versatility. J.D. is a guy that's played left too. We're thinking of that. He improved a lot at third base. But we want to keep that versatility always open. Multiple guys are going to play multiple positions. That's where our roster is."

Jeff McNeil, Jonathan Villar and Luis Guillorme could all be options at the hot corner as well, but Davis is still the most likely candidate to see a plurality of starts at third, if not an outright majority. The 27-year-old also saw his offensive numbers take a big step backwards in 2020, which could be factoring into Rojas' hesitation. If Davis hits like he did last season instead of returning to something closer to his 2019 level, the club has much less incentive to compromise the infield defense by keeping him in the lineup nearly every day.

Madrigal (shoulder) should be ready for Cactus League play by early March, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Madrigal underwent shoulder surgery during the offseason that carried a recovery timeline of 5-to-6 months. While he likely won't be available to begin Cactus League play, the 23-year-old should be able to appear in exhibition games for several weeks leading up to Opening Day. Assuming he's fully healthy, Madrigal should have an everyday role at second base for the White Sox in 2021.

Busch was invited to the Dodgers' major-league camp Tuesday, Eric Stephen of SBNation.com reports.

Busch will get the benefit of working with the team's big-league coaching staff for a few weeks, though he's not particularly close to joining them on a permanent basis. He has a promising bat and could eventually hit for both power and average, but he's played a grand total of 10 professional games and hasn't advanced beyond Low-A.

Chapman, who had hip surgery in September, is not expected to have any restrictions when the Athletics begin full-squad workouts next Monday, Shayna Rubin of The Mercury News reports.

The slugging third baseman recently posted video of his rehab work at Southern California facility ProSport on his personal Instagram account, where Chapman appeared to be pulling a small weighted sled device with his right hip free of any difficulty. The 27-year-old alluded to spending the majority of the last four months working his way back from labrum surgery, which cut short his 2020 season. Chapman managed to churn out a .232/.276/.535 line with 21 extra-base hits (nine doubles, two triples, 10 home runs) across 152 plate appearances despite being incessantly bothered by hip pain, so there is naturally plenty of optimism for a resurgent campaign in 2021.

Lewis received an invitation to the Twins' big-league camp Monday.

Lewis is just 21 years old and has just 33 Double-A games under his belt (in which he posted a modest 88 wRC+), so he probably still needs a bit of time in the minors before being seriously considered for a roster spot. The 2017 first-overall pick is a huge talent, though, so a debut later this season certainly can't be ruled out if he takes the next step at the Double-A or Triple-A level.

Henderson was invited Friday to join the Orioles' major-league spring training camp.

Henderson will get the chance to work out with the team's big-league coaching staff, though he's still a few years away from joining them on a permanent basis. He's played just 29 career professional games, all at the rookie-ball level, and the canceled minors schedule last year prevented him from continuing up the ladder.

Groshans received an invitation Friday to the Blue Jays' major-league spring training, Scott Mitchell of TSN.ca reports.

The 2018 first-round pick spent last season at the alternate training site, so he still received some developmental work despite the canceled minor-league season. Groshans last appeared at the Low-A level in 2019 and had a .909 OPS in 23 games, and he could begin 2021 at Double-A with a strong showing at spring training.